New blow for Heather Mills as she splits from divorce lawyers

HeatherMills has been dramatically dropped by the solicitors representing her in her drawn-out divorce battle with Sir Paul McCartney.

Top law firm Mishcon de Reya - who have been helping the troubled Mills over the past 15 months - last night confirmed they have parted company.

The news comes as the ё50 million divorce battle against the former Beatle reaches a critical point.

It has been suggested that the firm took action after becoming increasingly frustrated that Ms Mills went aginst their advice to keep quiet on issues surrounding her marriage and her three-year-old daughter, Beatrice.

The news comes after another round of television appearances yesterday in which she continued her heated tirade against her husband and which she has been repeatedly warned to tone down.

Lady McCartney went against advice yet to make an appearance on GMTV in which she claimed she is feeling better after venting her rage against estranged husband Paul McCartney and the media in a series of television interviews last week.

She also said that she is not upset that McCartney has been photographed kissing an American woman, Nancy Shevell. "It`s none of anybody`s business what happens in Paul`s love life," she said.

The media barrage last week has already ended with the resignation of her spokesman, Phil Hall, who refuse to help co ordinate her campaign against the newspapers.

She admitted that she was devastated to learn that her very public claims to be suicidal and that she feels `pushed to the edge` could prove disastrous for her divorce settlement and custody of her daughter.

The couple separated last year and are in the process of negotiating terms for their divorce. In interviews last week, Mills McCartney had accused the former Beatle of failing to protect her and their 3-year-old daughter, railed against press coverage and announced a campaign to get European legislation to curb news media.

Returning Thursday to GMTV, she said she has received much support for her campaign. "It`s been unbelievably cathartic. It`s the difference between being in prison and being on parole," she said.

"I`ve had 18 months of the worst press ever and I got the chance to protect myself and my daughter.

"A little girl came up to me and said, `you made me cry last week,` and I felt bad," Mills McCartney added. "I said `I didn`t want to make you cry` and she said, `I hate those bullying newspapers, I`m never going to buy a newspaper."

Top clawyer from Mischcon de Reya, Sir Anthony Julius, had been lined up to represent her. He boasts a track record of court victories including helping Princess Diana secure her divorce against Prince Charles.

Last night a spokesman confirmed the news, but refused to speculate on the reasons behind the decision.

"We can confirm that we no longer represent HeatherMills MCartney. Our strategy is that we never talk about clients either past or present, so we can`t say any more than that."

In a string of interviews broadcast in Britain and the US last week, Mrs Mills compared herself to princess Diana and the parents of Madeleine McCann.

She had been bound by law from mentioning specifics of the divorce but did however speak of being `disgusted` by Sir Paul`s initial refusal to pay for security for their daughter Beatrice, claiming he was putting their lives at risk.

Media publicist Max Clifford said HeatherMills had only succeeded in making a `bad situation even worse` after watching the television interviews.